A record-breaking 4,045 Jews ascended the Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem on Aug. 3 to mark Tisha B’Av, the national day of mourning, the Beyadenu religious rights group said on Sunday.
The number of worshippers who visited Judaism’s holiest site marked a 37% increase compared to last year’s Tisha B’Av, and the highest figure the NGO has ever recorded on the saddest day on the Hebrew calendar, it noted.
Since Rosh Hashanah (Oct. 3, 2024), 60,587 Jews have ascended the Mount, a 25% increase compared to the same period the previous year, Beyadenu said, described it as a continuation of “the clear trend of strengthening the Jewish people’s connection to the Holy Mount.”
Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Negev, Galilee and National Resilience Minister Yitzhak Wasserlauf were among those who visited the site and prayed there on the Jewish day of mourning.
In a departure from previous years, police authorized singing within the Temple Mount compound, which also houses the Al-Aqsa mosque, Islam’s third-holiest location, built on the site of the ancient Jewish Temples.
“Precisely from here, a message must be sent,” the Ben-Gvir said, outlining his prescription for responding to Hamas. He called for Israel to “conquer all of Gaza, declare sovereignty over the entire Strip, take down every Hamas member and encourage voluntary migration.”
Under the current government that includes Ben-Gvir, the Temple Mount has seen a surge in visits and open worship by Jews, especially on important national holidays such as Tisha B’Av.
The Prime Minister’s Office, however, emphasized on Tisha B’Av that Israel’s policy of maintaining the status quo on the Temple Mount “has not changed and will not change.”
